A is for Arachibutyrophobia

A is for Arachibutyrophobia – the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of ones mouth (Picture: Barcroft)

A brave photographer has laid bare our deepest fears by compiling an A to Z of phobias.

Shot over four months by Exeter-born photography graduate Isabel Mendoza, 22, the alphabetic series explores the things that make people shudder, wretch or flee in terror.

Alongside more common fears like spiders or heights, the project showcases a variety of rarer, more bizarre phobias such as Arachibutyrophobia – the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of one’s mouth.

B is for Bogyphobia

B is for Bogyphobia – the fear of bogeys or the bogeyman (Picture: Barcroft)

G is for Gerascophobia

Taken for a university project, the majority of images were shot in the in-house photography studios at Falmouth University, where she studied Press and Editorial Photography.

Other images explore everyday phobias that many people have, from a fear of the dentists to Emetophobia – a fear of vomiting – and Gerascophobia, a phobia of growing old.

H is for Haphephobia

H is for Haphephobia – the fear of being touched (Picture: Barcroft)

I is for Isolophobia

I is for Isolophobia – the fear of solitude/being alone (Picture: Barcroft)

Isabel said: ‘I wanted to include some well-known ones that a lot of people face on a day to day basis for example Coulrophobia which is a phobia of clowns, and then some not so well known such as Arachibutyrophobia which is the fear of peanut butter sticking to the roof of the mouth.

‘I wanted to show a light hearted way into the world of phobias, by using my skills in prop building and special effects makeup as well as my photography, without stripping the term “phobia” of it’s seriousness.’

J is for Jangelaphobia

J is for Jangelaphobia – the fear of jelly(Picture: Barcroft)

K is for Keraunophobia

K is for Keraunophobia – the fear of thunder and lightning (Picture: Barcroft)

L is for Ligyrophobia

L is for Ligyrophobia – the fear of loud noises (Picture: Barcroft)

The project involved extensive research, with Isabel working her way through the vast repertoire of human phobias to find the final 26 for her A to Z.

She said: ‘Essentially I had to whittle through hundreds of phobias and narrow them down to 26 that I found the most interesting, all the while trying to see how they would work photographically.

M is for Misophobia

M is for Misophobia – the fear of being contaminated with dirt or germs (Picture: Barcroft)

N is for Necrophobia

N is for Necrophobia – the fear of death or dead things (Picture: Barcroft)

O is for Obesophobia

O is for Obesophobia – the fear of gaining weight (Picture: Barcroft)

P is for Pnigophobia

P is for Pnigophobia – the fear of choking or being smothered (Picture: Barcroft)

‘I wanted a mixture of phobias that I could photograph really creatively, and then some that could be done in a more simple way, just to make the series flow a little better for the eyes.

‘In some images I didn’t want the phobia to be obvious so I really had to think of a way I could create this fear so the viewer would actually have to think about what is going on in the image.’

Q is for Quadrophobia

Q is for Quadrophobia – the fear of things that come in four (Picture: Barcroft)

R is for Radiophobia

R is for Radiophobia – the fear of x-rays or radiation (Picture: Barcroft)

S is for Somniphobia

S is for Somniphobia – the fear of sleep (Picture: Barcroft)

T is for Taphephobia

T is for Taphephobia – the fear of being buried alive or cemeteries (Picture: Barcroft)

The creative photographer – who doesn’t have any phobias of her own – said that her favourite image was the A for Arachibutyrophobia.

She said: ‘It is the first image of the series, the first image I shot and it smacks you right in the face when you first see it.

U is for Urophobia

U is for Urophobia – the fear of urinating (Picture: Barcroft)

V is for Vaccinophobia

V is for Vaccinophobia – the fear of vaccinations (Picture: Barcroft)

W is for Wiccaphobia

W is for Wiccaphobia – the fear of witches and witchcraft (Picture: Barcroft)

‘These images were produced as a hardback book with accompanying alphabet letters and the name for each phobia.

‘It really was fun seeing people look at it, grimace, and try and figure out what each phobia is.’

X is for Xenophobia

X is for Xenophobia – the fear of foreigners or strangers (Picture: Barcroft)